— On his journey to a rst-team debut
sions have given him a strong platform to be ready for his big moment.
“The step was quite big for me, especially being out with a lot of injuries. I had lost a lot of time to improve technically and tactically, so going straight into the under-21s with Nathan Fraser going up to the rst-team was a big responsibility.
“At rst, I did nd it pretty hard but I’ve been going out every day before sessions doing extras with the coaches like Ian Sharps and Rhys Carr. They’ve de nitely really helped me and especially over the last couple of months. I’ve seen some big improvements and I’m just really grateful for them. “I’ve always gone down with the rst-team for a session here and there. I knew the players, knew Gary O’Neil who is a really great manager and I always felt comfortable going down there, but I never really thought I would integrate and make my debut as soon as I did.
“You can always see some signs and with a few players injured, your opportunity might be there. It is very strange and things can just come out of the blue as you’ve seen with players at other clubs such as Jayden Danns with Liverpool. You never know what’s going to happen and the opportunity can be just around the corner, and you’ve just got to take it.”
Unlike against Fulham, Chiwome had got his head around the fact that he wasn’t just there to make up the numbers and believes that being mentally prepared was important for when he was called upon on the 60-minute mark against Coventry, as he entered a packed-out Molineux in the world’s oldest competition.
“I really didn’t expect to be on that early, especially at 60 minutes for a debut. It’s quite unheard of really and it was quite a big shock, but I was always prepared.
“I’ve been physically t and playing a lot of games recently, so I knew I was going to be ne physically so it was just the mental side of things. Would I be able to cope for the full 30 minutes or even if it went to extra-time? I think that was the big thing, but I didn’t expect to come on that early. I’m very grateful.
“It was good and a real eye-opener to see how the fans react to di erent situations, that was a big di erence between 21s and rst-team. You can always hear the fans and you’re there to excite the fans and make them happy. To hear the roar at Molineux, especially when we scored, was just amazing and there was no feeling like it.
“The nerves were there before the game and the night before I could barely sleep for a few hours because I was just so excited and nervous. As soon as I was told I was coming on, it was straight serious and I knew my job. The assistant manager told me what I was supposed to do when I came on and the ga er gave me some nice words and encouragement before I came on so the nerves just ooded away. I was just there to work and help the team.
“I think I could’ve been involved a bit more but I’m happy to have helped the team score the rst two goals. I would’ve like to help stop the two goals at the end being conceded, but I’m overall quite happy with my performance. There are always things to work on and I could’ve been better challenging for the 50/50s and just being more available to players for support.”
Linking up with England under-18s the day after his debut meant Chiwome hasn’t had much time to take in the biggest milestone in his career to date, but he has ourished wearing the Three Lions in the past week, helping his country win the U18 Pinatar Cup and scoring the winning goal to clinch the trophy.
“I don’t really think it’s sunk in yet because I made my debut and then the next day I was ying out to Spain with England. I haven’t had much time to wind down, have it settled to mind and spend time with my family to celebrate it.
“I’m so eternally grateful and it’s always something I’ll look back on for the rest of my career. I’ve very grateful to the ga er for giving me the opportunity and trusting me to come on. I just hope that I can maybe come on, get some more minutes and positively in uence the team and the future.
“It’s amazing and always an honour to come out here and represent England, the country I was born. The lads are really great and there are some really talented footballers here. It’s so good to be in and around them, be recognised for my talent and that’s something I’m always very grateful for.
“I’m always looking forward to the next camp and working as hard as I can to get there and show that I’m good enough to be here.” wolves.co.uk